Pragmatic Libertarians? Yeah, Right.

Many of us have had a change of heart about government action when we encounter unexpected and otherwise insurmountable challenges. Consider the value that my friend, Dennis Sanders, found in Minnesota’s Medicaid program when he needed its assistance back in 1996. Or my experience, when I realized that had it not been for government action our only child, who suffers from a severe case of Tourette Syndrome, might never have had access to the medications that help him lead a reasonably normal, productive life.Pete Abel “The Moderate Voice” ( via Daily Dish)

I have long maintained that Libertarians are in large part the angry, selfish wing of the conservative mind set for whom everything appears to be going well at that particular moment in time.
Up against the wall, many will come running for handouts from the tax payer- not the Government – the tax payer – just like their elder siblings who thrive on various corporate welfare schemes.

The excerpt above is a fascinating look into the Libertarian mind. Very often Libertarians can look far enough ahead to see the government “interfering” but not far enough to see that there may come a time when, like many of us, they are in need of that which only a community of strangers can provide. That some Libertarians are unable to see this, or see past egos which might tell them that no matter what the circumstances, they will prevail only as individuals or small groups, is also a built in justification for not wanting to contribute to the common good through taxes for vital services.

So the true prevailing attitude for this subset of Libertarians seems to be ” I will not help or pay into this now, but you should count on me and others like me attempting to cash in when we are in need.”

That this individual “realized” that had it not been for “government action” his only child might never have had access to the medications that help him lead a reasonably normal life suggests that contrary to what they would have us believe, Libertarians do not look very far ahead at all.

Some-days, and this appears to be one of them, I think Libertarianism and its attendant philosophies are a stupid fraud created by selfish tunnel vision jerks.

A Libertarian ceases to be Libertarian the moment he or she becomes pragmatic.

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5 thoughts on “Pragmatic Libertarians? Yeah, Right.”

Wow, we better shrink the government so when those nasty old Libertarians come for their handouts, we’re not screwed.

By the way — the way to avoid becoming dependent on strangers is to maintain relationships, to take care of yourself, and to keep something socked away, because you never know when you — or somebody you care about — might need it.

That is, of course, if the people you don’t care about haven’t stolen it through taxation. Then, good judgment, hard work, and wise planning are worthless.

Hey there Rich, I thank you for being the first person to leave a comment on the new blog.

Your points are well taken and appreciated. No doubt there is much I have to learn about Libertarianism, though nevertheless, I do stand by my assertions.

“Wow, we better shrink the government so when those nasty old Libertarians come for their handouts, we’re not screwed”.

Well, I hope I did indicate that this attitude belongs to a subset, and not to all Libertarians. Anyway, I doubt the folks I am writing of can organize a box lunch, never-mind a full scale assault on anything, so I suppose in the end they are a moot issue.

“By the way — the way to avoid becoming dependent on strangers is to maintain relationships, to take care of yourself, and to keep something socked away, because you never know when you — or somebody you care about — might need it.”

I agree with most of this, though I am not sure, short of total isolation, that it is ever possible be one hundred percent independent of strangers. I would imagine this view might upset some Libertarians, but I think that is because they are in denial of some realities. Good luck avoiding becoming beholden to, say, the ambulance attendant who takes you to the hospital, but maybe Libertarians see that as just another business transaction.

It seems to me that it might just be a numbers game. The philosophy of complete independence from those around you is a strong, powerful notion that is very possibly a cornerstone of our will towards existence.

So is the opposite.

There are somewhere in the region of six billion people here, as we know, and, in the abstract at least, I care about everyone of them. Even thieves and Neo Cons.

But systems break down by their very nature.

I’m guessing good judgement, hard work and wise planning are never worthless, though I take your point to mean they are less powerful in the face of a force (such as a monolithic, all powerful, tax grabbing, greed driven, financial and governing elite) that appears to be unbeatable.

Without wanting to be too judgemental, this sounds like a sort of Libertarian victimization mind-set.

No one here is asserting that there are not bastards and parasites out there, and maybe even a much, much higher percentage of sociopaths than we would like to accept. (if we think about it at all) It is also quite evident that many taxes are not needed and that Government wastes money. On the flip side, many manufactured products, for example, are not needed even as they are forced down our throats by the brainwashing faction of a marketeering monster gone haywire and business, of course, also wastes money big time. But it’s all good because they assure me they are doing all this in order to serve me better. ( I am not trying to suggest that a Libertarian outlook is necessarily connected to business, but observing the marketplace is a good way to see the inevitable result of many Libertarian ideas in action as they impact on the larger populations)

So I see a personal libertarianism as an important aspect of individual character, and the acceptance that we are all in this together as a necessary means of moving forward.

Thanks again Rich for your thoughtful and polite comment. Please feel free to return any time you like.

Some people I know closely like to rail against government intervention and welfare, have urged me to vote for Ron Paul and been involved in the Constitution Party. But they used Medicaid without hesitation and are careful to ensure that their children are still covered by it.

Someone even closer to me comes from a conservative community likely to scapegoat Mexican immigrants as welfare sponges, but this person has suffered from lack of medical care that their family could not afford, even following principles of thrift and “self-reliance.”

Yep, I know of several similar examples. Now I don’t want to be getting a rep for starting shoot outs with libertarians or Paul supporters, (you might be surprised how many you find in Toronto), but, oh well, what can I say, I do have a few major problems with the scope and depth continuity of the various ideas and philosophies involved.